NEW ORLEANS – When Deandre Baker was manning one of Georgia’s two starting spots at cornerback, the fifth-ranked Bulldogs could count on the senior giving a lockdown performance.

As a result, Kirby Smart’s 5th-ranked team was able to make some star-power quarterbacks look mortal.

For instance, Missouri’s Drew Lock threw for 44 touchdowns this year‒most in the history of the SEC. Against Georgia, he didn’t throw a single touchdown, completing 23 of 48 passes for 221 yards. Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa fared even worse, completing just 10 of 25 passes for 164 yards before the Bulldogs knocked him out of the game with a knee injury in the third quarter.

With Baker, the thought of facing Texas quarterback Sam Ehlinger might not have seemed such a daunting challenge. But with the decision of Georgia’s Jim Thorpe Award winner to sit out Tuesday’s Sugar Bowl (8:45, ESPN) after all, the question is, will the Bulldogs’ typically tough pass defense be able to sustain its success against a Longhorn offense and quarterback who know how to put points on the board?

Freshman cornerback Tyson Campbell figures to be the player most likely to find himself in the line of fire. Campbell started Georgia’s first 10 games before being replaced in the Week 11 contest against UMass by redshirt freshman Eric Stokes.

With Baker not playing, Campbell, along with Tyrique McGhee and Mark Webb, is expected to try and fill his shoes.

“He's gotten a lot of reps. He's getting a lot of opportunities. And we know we're up against some really good wideouts. They got really big physical wideouts across the board,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said. “They do an exceptional job throwing the ball down the field. So, we know those guys will get tested, and all the secondary will. So, we will try to prepare them as much as we can.”

Since defensive coordinator and secondary coach Mel Tucker has moved on after taking the head job at Colorado, Smart put himself in charge of coaching defensive backs as they’ve prepared for Tuesday night’s game. The Bulldogs (11-2) will be facing a potent Texas offense that features one of the best up-and-coming quarterbacks in Ehlinger and one of the tallest wide receiving corps the SEC East champs have seen all year in Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Collin Johnson.

At 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds, Humphrey leads the Longhorns (9-4) in both receptions and yards with 79 for 1,109 yards and nine touchdowns. Johnson, who goes 6-6 and 215, is not far behind with 65 catches for 945 yards and seven scores.

Ehlinger was the nation’s No. 5 quarterback recruit in 2016, according to Rivals.com. He's quite capable of getting his fleet of receivers the ball.

The sophomore isn't exactly height-challenged himself, standing 6-3 and weighing 235 pounds. He presents Georgia’s defense with a potentially difficult challenge as far as being a dual-threat QB. In 13 games, Ehlinger has completed 256 of 398 passes for 3,123 yards and 25 touchdowns with just five interceptions.

There’s more. Ehlinger has also rushed for 417 yards, but what’s most impressive is the fact he’s scored 13 touchdowns. Texas running backs Tre Watson and Keontay Ingram have only rushed for three each.

“Those wide receivers are really good and (Ehlinger) knows where he wants the ball. He’s a dual-threat guy who factors into the speed of the tempo, although he’s also got some good players around him,” Georgia defensive tackle Michael Barnett said. “He reminds me of Kentucky’s quarterback (Terry Wilson) who can run, and also really sling the ball.”

Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm typically doesn’t get to watch a lot of opposing teams’ offenses, but he's caught Ehlinger in action.

“We don’t really end up watching too much of the opposing offense, but (Thursday) on the bus ride to Atlanta they had the Oklahoma-Texas game up on TV, so I kind of got to watch a little bit of Sam and how they play on offense,” Fromm said. “They play really well, so I’m excited to see what he’s going to do in the game and kind of just hope he doesn’t score too many points.”

Of course, the Bulldogs haven’t been bad themselves.

Georgia averages 39.2 points per game, 2nd in the SEC and 13th nationally, while Texas is scoring a clip of 31.3 points per game, 5th in the Big 12 and 48th nationally.

“They get on the ball. They try to snap it quick, use a hard count, and let their quarterback do his thing,” Barnett said. “They do a lot of RPOs, counters and stretches. They’re very good at it, and once they get the offense going, they can be tough.”